good worm bad worm?

[Sancho]

Attachment 38662found 4 of these in my 5 gallon keep it or get rid of them? it does not appear to be a fire worm. this is a bad pic but they a thin orange and red and blue in the center. the biggest one is about 6 inches long. I think they are cool to watch but am worried they might eat the small amount of coral in this small tank.

[socal619]

bristle worm i think. ive seen mixed things saying there good and bad, research

[jasonp87]

Yeah looks like a bristle worm. They are fine in moderation but with such a small tank to begin with they could get out of hand really quick. I dont think they really eat corals though. I would keep an eye on them and make sure they dont start taking over. They are ugly and can/will bite so be careful when removing them if thats what you end up doing.

[Sancho]

They are bristol worms. I cant seem to id them though. There is so much conflicting info on these in the forums. I want to leave them but have read other post that the eat zoa's and paly's. I like the fact that they move the sand around and feed on detrius but will they feed on coral? Seems to be 50/50 on keep them or get rid of them.

[nanoreef1]

Take it out u don't really need it.lol

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[AFUreef]

I have hundreds in my tank and have a mixed reef with a ton of z/p sps and clams. Never had a issue with them. They are great part of the clean up crew IMO...

[nanoreef1]

I have hundreds in my tank and have a mixed reef with a ton of z/p sps and clams. Never had a issue with them. They are great part of the clean up crew IMO...

I hate them they're ugly.haha But u are right there a good clean up crew. They eat up any left over food

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[DaveMorris]

There is no conflicting information on the good of bristle worms. What you read is scientists and marine biologists saying they are good and ignorant aquarists saying they are bad. Read up on them from Dr. Ron Shimek. You will find that they are very good for a tank. The only time I would remove one is if it is so big that it creeps you out.

[Vince]

Would never take them out of my tank!

[HumanMachine]

The ones you should worry about are Fire Bristle Worms. Otherwise these guys are all up in my fuge, I just leave them be, they seem to know what they're doing.

[HumanMachine]

Double post. But here's some reference.

http://www.chucksaddiction.com/hitchworms.html